This invention relates to a food package including a food package tray which is partially surrounded by a food package jacket and an associated method. The food package jacket has a bottom flap which is disposed adjacent to the base of the food package tray and at least one side flap disposed adjacent to the sidewalls of the tray.
One of the purposes of food packages is to provide a surface on which informational and marketing indicia are printed. For example, it is well known that an attractive food package can be influential in the consumer's purchasing decision. Thus, vendors of food products spend a considerable amount of time designing the packaging and labelling of their products.
In addition to marketing information and other eye catching designs which are printed on labels, information required by the government must be printed on the labels. For example, in the United States, nutritional information such as the amount of calories, fat and sodium in the food product are required to be printed on the labels. This required printed information, of course, limits the space available for marketing purposes and can also detract from the overall design of the package.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,090,615 discloses a package containing a lid that increases the surface area of a label. This patent discloses providing a lid having side flaps and a bottom flap. The side flaps define a plane oriented substantially perpendicular to the lid such that the package is stable when resting on the side flap.
Although the stated goal of achieving increased surface area is achieved by that design, there are several problems associated with the package and the method of making the package. First, there is a problem in sealing the lid to the food package tray. This is due to a lack of stiffness in the flange of the tray to which the lid is sealed. Second, once the lid is sealed to the tray, the lid must be folded several times, which is difficult to do because of the lack of stiffness of the tray as well as the fact that there is food in the package which must be upset during the folding process. Third, and finally, the lid has a flap which is glued to the bottom of the tray. When the tray is placed into the microwave, the glue can become liquid and can get deposited on the microwave floor. In addition, the heating of the glue in the microwave can cause an offensive odor, which, as can be appreciated, is universally undesired.
What is needed, therefore, is a food package that accomplishes the goal of increasing label space, but which does so without the attendant disadvantages of current prior art packages.